Our story
Find out more about the history of The Greggs Foundation and our journey so far
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The Greggs Foundation has grown from a small grant-making trust into a charitable foundation awarding in excess of £4m in grants every year.
Supporting charitable causes has always been part of the Greggs DNA, evident from the early days of the free pie and peas suppers in 1960s Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Now, The Greggs Foundation supports individuals, families and community organisations all over the UK with grant programmes which really make a difference.
Our history is long, but our impact is strong throughout the communities we support.
A brief history of The Greggs Foundation
1939
Greggs is established as a door-to-door bakery round. It sells bakery products to many of the mining terraces in Newcastle and surrounding areas
1951
The first Greggs shop opens in order to expand the range of menu items on offer. The first shop was bought on Gosforth High Street for £7,750!
1964
Ian Gregg takes over the business and starts to develop the in-shop bakery concept
1967
The first recorded 'pie n peas' supper event for older residents in Gateshead (pictured above). Greggs begins to develop a reputation as a company with community at its heart
1983
The first ever Greggs sponsored Children's Cancer Run at Gosforth Racecourse, which to date has raised over £5 million to support Children's Cancer Research
1987
After hundreds of requests for support each week, the Greggs Charitable Trust was established as a family charity to support local hardship. The charity was given gifts of cash and shares to respond to local need
1993
After six years of small grants, a major grant of £15,000 was awarded to Northumberland Wildlife Trust.
1994
Greggs opens its 500th shop
1994
The Hardship Fund is established, with the collaboration of local trusts to support families and individuals in significant need in the North East.
1997
The Greggs Trust, as we were then known, celebrates its 10-year anniversary, with donations totalling £1,768,000 in a decade
1999
Thanks to a Business in the Community event, Greggs sees the difference a nutritious start to the school day makes to children. As a result, the first Greggs Breakfast Club is established
2003
Collection boxes are introduced to Greggs shops to raise money for local charities. Divisional Charity Committees are established to distribute the donations. Over time, this becomes the Regional Grants programme, still available today
2005
The 100th Greggs Breakfast Club provides a nutritious breakfast for schoolchildren
2006
Greggs raises £70,000 for BBC Children in Need in the first year of supporting the appeal
2009
Greggs Trust becomes The Greggs Foundation, the logo changes and a new mission statement reads: 'making a difference to people in need at the heart of our local communities'. We now run five grant programmes; North East Core Funding Grants, Local Community Project Fund Grants, Hardship Fund and Breakfast Clubs, with other fundraising initiatives raising over £1.8million per year
2010
Following a national competition involving our Breakfast Club school pupils, Hope is selected as The Greggs Foundation mascot
2011
The total raised for BBC Children in Need exceeds £1million for the first time ever
2012
The Greggs Foundation celebrate our 25th anniversary
2013
The Greggs Foundation hits a major milestone, opening the 250th Breakfast Club
2015
The 350th Greggs Breakfast Club is opened
2016
Greggs Breakfast Clubs reach Northern Ireland and the 400th Greggs Breakfast Club is opened
2022
The Greggs Foundation launches its first ever free education programme for Greggs Breakfast Club schools with Rethink Food – The Agents of Change
2024
The Greggs Foundation reaches its target of opening 1000 Breakfast Clubs one year earlier than planned - reaching over 75,000 children every day